Joomla 1.5.7
September 12, 2008
Tim Smith, Computeract!ve, Friday 12 September 2008 at 00:00:00
Host a complete website and let others contribute
Joomla is an impressive content management system that can be used for a solo effort website, or for websites with an active community of contributers….
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WinZip 12
September 11, 2008
Chris Wiles, vnunet.com, Thursday 11 September 2008 at 00:00:00
Latest version of the archive manager
WinZip is one of those ubiquitous compression programs that nearly everybody has on their computer, although there are many other rival products available….
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First Look: Google Chrome
September 3, 2008
Daniel Robinson, vnunet.com, Wednesday 3 September 2008 at 15:08:00
The new browser impresses, but not for business use
Google’s Chrome is an impressive browser with a simple and clean user interface. But, while it handles popular websites with no difficulty, our tests suggest that web-based business applications may…
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Art Attack Friday: I Am 8-Bit 2008
August 15, 2008
Last night I was lucky enough to be invited to the opening of this year’s I Am 8-Bit art show in good ol’ Hollywood, California. For anyone not familiar with the show, I Am 8-Bit is a compilation of videogame themed art by a variety of artists. What’s most impressive about the show is that a lot of the artists aren’t even gamers. Once you see how detailed and meaningful some of the pieces are, it is hard to believe they were created by people that have never touched a videogame before.
But don’t take my word for it, check out the below gallery to check everything out. But be prepared: I took a lot of pictures. In fact, I think I got a picture of nearly every single piece on display. This may be the biggest gallery Destructoid has ever seen!
In all honesty, though, I couldn’t help myself. The art is absolutely incredible. As I walked around the large gallery, I was endlessly impressed by how creative and varied everything was. From a modern, nude Princess Peach with a P-wing tattoo to an Elevator Action movie poster, all the artwork was just as beautiful as it was wonderfully random.
Luckily I didn’t spend any money, but I was this close to buying a 0 Chrono Trigger painting. I’m not kidding. Hit the jump to see which painting I am talking about and also for a list of my top 5 favorite pieces.
If you live in the L.A. area you have to check out this free (!) show. It runs until September 7. Click here to find out more about it. And if you happen to purchase something really cool, hey, my birthday is coincidentally next month!
Guitar Hero On Tour Decades screenshots for uh, decades
August 15, 2008
Without much fanfare, Nintendo went ahead and announced Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades at their E3 2008 press conference. Later Activision confirmed it, simply saying — more or less — "Yup, it’s a follow up to Guitar Hero: On Tour for the DS." 
Now we have some new screens, and from what we can tell, it’s going to be Guitar Hero: On Tour with some new songs. Tracks confirmed so far: 
- Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Can’t Stop"
- Paramore - "crushcrushcrush"
- All-American Rejects - "Dirty Little Secret"
- The Darkness - "I Believe in a Thing Called Love"
- Jimmy Eat World - "The Middle"
- Linkin Park - "One Step Closer"
- Foo Fighters - "The Pretender"
- Seether - "Remedy"
- Smashing Pumpkins - "Tarantula"
- Fall Out Boy - "The Take Over, The Break’s Over"
Users of the original On Tour will be able to share songs with those that have the Decades cart as well, though we’re not entirely sure how that’ll work. Our first guess is usually black magic, but that was wrong when we guessed it would be used to facilitate Xbox/Xbox 360 backwards compatibility.
Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades will be available this fall and your fingers will fall off trying to play it.
Attention span
August 15, 2008
By Marc Settle
Reporter, BBC iPM
As the age at which children start to get familiar with computers and the net gets ever lower, questions are starting to be asked about what that exposure is doing to our children’s brains and their ability to concentrate.
These questions are ones which eminent neuroscientist Baroness Greenfield says needs to be confronted. The director of the Royal Institution says the “sensory-laden environment” of computers could result in people “staying in the world of the small child”.
Professor Greenfield has spent a lifetime researching the physiology of the brain, and now thinks that there could be a link between the attention span of children and the growing use of computers.
In an interview for Radio 4’s iPM she said: “The last 10 years have seen a three-fold increase in the prescription of the drug Ritalin, a drug used for Attention Deficit Disorder. One asks why
“Why suddenly is there greater demand for a drug for attentional problems” she asked. “This might, and I stress might, be something to do with the increased exposure of young children to unsupervised and lengthy hours in front of a screen.”
"The technology is creating an environment that is answer rich, but we’re question poor"Susan Greenfield
iPM: Listen to the interview with Baroness Greenfield
Baroness Greenfield wondered if the cause was growing computer use.
“Could it be, and this is just a suggestion which I think we should look into, could it be if a small child is sitting in front of a screen pressing buttons and getting reactions quickly for many hours, they get used to and their brains get used to rapid responses” she said.
If children do not have stories read to them and have little practice of concentrating for long periods this could effect how they handle the sedate pace of school life, said Baroness Greenfield.
She asked: “Could it be that they then have to sit still for half an hour and of course they’re not used to that because they’re used to the rapid interaction with the screen, and could it - again a question - be that they are fidgety and hyperactive and then diagnosed as having a disorder”
The brain, says the distinguished neuroscientist, changes all the time - but it is very sensitive to the environment its in, and so it might be affected by the continual use of computers.
“What we need to question is this: are we putting people into the optimum environment How can we create an environment which will pre-dispose the brain to react in ways we consider ideal” she said.
“The technology is creating an environment that is answer rich, but we’re question poor.”
She contrasts the life of modern-day children with the generation which grew up without computers, who had to work to find answers by going to a library to look things up.
Baroness Greenfield also claims that the distinction has been lost between information and knowledge - with the facts provided by easy-accessed information losing the context necessary for knowledge.
Her views are echoed by the writer Nicholas Carr in his recent essay “Is Google making us stupid” that was published in Atlantic Monthly. In the article Mr Carr claims that his mind is changing as a result of greater computer use. “Deep reading that used to come naturally has become a struggle,” he said.
But a contrasting view comes from the philosopher Julian Baggini, who has written that the fear of change and of children becoming “degenerate aliens” is as old as parenthood, an “age-old anxiety” which he accused Baroness Greenfield of dignifying.
In response, the professor told iPM that she would rather not be complacent and “end up with a world that we don’t want”.
Baroness Greenfield can be heard on BBC Radio 4 at 17.30 on Friday 15 August 2008.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation
EA Showcase 08: Boogie Superstar
August 15, 2008
Among the slew of titles Electronic Arts decided to show the press at yesterday’s showcase was Boogie Superstar for the Wii, the upcoming girl-centric follow up to last year’s Boogie. The game features dancing, singing, and — let’s be reasonable — is not exactly directed at our demographic. 
So it’s a good thing we snuck in with our tween correspondent, 12-year-old Taylor Tiffany. This was her first assignment, and she was not on EA’s guest list, despite the fact the we very clearly RSVPed for her. A bit nervous at first, Taylor really came out of her shell after a couple of drinks and EA presented Boogie Superstar.
Hit the jump for her full report.
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